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Pain Bringers
"Pain Bringers" is the 43rd episode of Once Upon a Virus. Summary Brad has run off with the Staff of Peace and takes the pub hostage with it, finding time on the way to injure Joanna in a way which could prove fatal. While under duress, Josh promises to protect his daughter. Peep's daughter, meanwhile, stays by her mother's side and might have to prove herself magically. And in the Wikia world that was, Reginafan2626 and DeviousPeep meet and bond over a shared love of pain and destruction, but, as is habitual when villains come together, this could all culminate in betrayal. Plot Liz, Selena and Matthew remain standing at the town line following Brad's declamation, all absolutely dumbfounded after what's just happened. "What do we do?" asks Selena, "Do we stop him." "Of course we stop him, you idiot! He's unstable and he's got the most powerful weapon ever to exist!" Liz yells. Selena frowns at this, while Matthew just asks his girlfriend what she's going to do. "It's obvious, isn't it?" the bot-possessed maniac inquires, "I'm going to find Dr. Sonya, I'm going to get that Staff… and I'm gonna kill him in the process." Readying her sword, Liz begins charging into town. "It's a shame," she says to herself as she goes, "The Maleficent Seven was such a good name…" Joe and Emma wake up in the latter's bed at the B&B, both completely naked under the sheets. "So…" says Joe, reaching a hand out from beneath the covers and stifling for his boxers, "That happened." "Yes," Emma nods awkwardly, sitting up and using the sheet to cover herself, "Yes it did…" "I, um… I enjoyed it," Joe adds, partially dressing, and Emma replies with, "Yeah… me too. It was, er… good. It was good." "Good... good," Joe says, now being the one to exhibit an awkward nod. She finds her bra at the foot of the bed and begins to fasten it around her chest; a horrible silence fills the room. "So…" Joe once again finds himself saying, "What did last night… what did it mean, for us?" "Does it matter?" Emma wonders, getting out of bed in her underwear. She draws the curtains and lets the sun shine through, basking in the beauty of the day. "We had fun," she continues, "Why label it? Like this beautiful day… we should just enjoy it, whatever it was, while we can." Joe nods and Emma returns to the bed. She kisses him on the lips and the shot pans over to the exposed window. Outside, Joanna is looking up at the building with Rachel by her side; the two of them are holding hands, and the latter is telling her girlfriend to get up there and apologize to her daughter for whatever it is she thinks she might have done. "It's no use," Joanna insists, "She hates me…" "Well if you don't talk to her then it's your own fault if your relationship falls apart," Rachel points out. "But it already has," Joanna insists further, "I… I gotta get of here, I… Oh, my God." Rachel turns to see what the Blood Wiccan beside her has just noticed – Brad, thundering through down with the Staff of Peace in tow. "Where the hell did you get that?!" Joanna exclaims as she approaches, but Brad just shoots her a distasteful look before aiming the Staff at her and zapping her with the black and white lightning which fires from the crystals in the hilt. She screams as it skims her side, and Dr. Sonya just continues on, hell-bent on revenge. "Joanna?" Rachel exclaims as her girlfriend collapses, "Joanna?!" Peep clutches her side, where a nasty wound has manifested. In flashback, Peep is inflicting wounds on other people; more specifically, a family of four struggling to get by in the Once Upon a Time Wiki hovel that they live in. "I don't know why you're screaming in defiance, you really should know what happens when you steal from my coven…" Peep points out, flaring up red lightning in her hand and poking the father's head with it. It surges throughout his entire body and he screams – screams – with pain as it does so; the whole thing makes Peep smile widely. The mother screams, seeing her husband in pain, while her son and daughter just cry in the corner. "Oh, shut up," Peep begs of her, taking a potion off of her belt and throwing it in the woman's face. It burns like acid. The children are crying even more, watching the flesh of their mother's face melt off, and so Peep just rolls her eyes, deciding to kick one of them to the ground out of annoyance. Suddenly, there's a thunderous knock at the door, and Peep is surprised. In her best imitation of the dumb mother she's torturing, she asks, "Who is it?" She ceases her electrocution of the father but when the woman continues to scream she quickly punches her in her face (or lack thereof), causing her to pass out. The knocking continues, and soon the entire door is blasted inward. Dust fills the hovel and Peep is confused as to what's just happened. However, when the dust settles, she sees that Reginafan2626, scythe in tow, is now standing inside. "Who are you?" she wonders, confused. "I'm Reginafan2626, the Bureaucrat of this wiki… who are you?" "I'm DeviousPeep, next in line to lead the Wiki Witches of the West." "Well what are you doing here, DeviousPeep next in line to lead the Wiki Witches of the West?" the Evil Bureaucrat queries. "I'm torturing this annoying family. They stole a golden chalice from our inventory, no doubt to pawn. I know it's odd to make such a fuss about a chalice, but you know…" "No, I understand," Reginafan nods, "They took what was yours, and now you're giving them what they deserve." "Exactly," Peep nods, smiling. "Please… help us…" the father begs, weak, but Peep gives him a swift smack – knocking two teeth from his gums – before asking Reginafan, "And what brings you here?" "They stole money from my treasury," Reginafan reveals, "I'm came here to…" "Torture them?" Peep wonders. "Well, yeah." "Oh, my God, this is so awkward," Peep laughs, "… do you want me to leave and let you lay in to them, or…?" "No, no, you seem to know what you're doing," Reginafan nods, "What, um, what were you planning to do next?" "Well, I was gonna take my little dagger and skin the mother while her children watched" – the little girl wails – "but now I'm thinking I could just cover her in shallow cuts, pin her up outside and let the crows ravage her until she dies. And, of course, the children would be forced to witness this as well." "And the father?" Reginafan inquires, ignoring the shivering wife whose cheeks have now entirely slide away. "He was going to be some of my best work," Peep tells him, moving in and whispering in the Bureaucrat's ear all the violent things she wants to do. "That sounds… exquisite," Reginafan commends. "Are you as turned on as I am right now?" she asks. "Probably not quite as much," he replies, "But I'd love to help you in any way I can. After all, these people are thieves… they deserve to be punished." Peep smiles broadly, telling Reginafan, "I'll get started on the mother… you whip the kids." He grins evilly. Josh frowns, watching Justine from outside the window of The Sword and Hammer. She's helping Rena and Tiago serve customers, and as the weight of not being able to spend time with her truly dawns on him, a tear falls from the Mayor's eye. "Get inside," says Dr. Sonya from behind. Josh sees his reflection in the window, as well as the Staff of Peace which is now being aimed at his back, and he puts his hands up. "What do you want?" he wonders. "Just get in," Brad hisses, and Josh proceeds to open the door. "Hey, what the hell are you doing h—" Rena begins to exclaim, seeing Josh enter, but then he notices Brad brandishing a weapon, and he grows confused. Pushing Josh to his knees, Dr. Sonya slams the door shut and locks it, telling everybody to get down. The customers listen, finding their way to the floor, and Rena asks what this is about. As he does so, he opens a drawer behind the counter – one which contains a gun. This is invisible to Brad, who orders Rena to get down like his wife and father or else he'll be blown to dust right here right now. To prove he's being serious, Brad aims the Staff of Peace at the cash register and fires the black and white lightning from the hilt. The cash register turns to dust and drifts away, and the hostages scream. "So, like I said… get down," Brad once again orders, and Rena is forced to abandon the gun in order to do as he says. Josh slowly makes his way toward his daughter while Brad stands tall over them all. He twitches nervously, clearly deluded and deranged, and announces, "You should all die… she died… and so should you… you let her die… it's… it's… all your fault, it's…" "Are you okay?" Josh asks Justine via whisper, and she nods, covering her belly with her arms. "Shut up," Rena tells his father-in-law in a hush yet stern tone, "Whenever you're around… bad things happen." Josh is sad to hear this. Back in time, Reginafan wanders into his palace with DeviousPeep at his side, both of them laughing. "The way his eyeballs exploded," Peep chuckles, "I almost wet myself!" Reginafan recalls this too, also chuckling. "Your majesty?" DisneyMeerkats calls, approaching its sire. "Ah, Disney," Reginafan smiles, "Could you fetch us some drinks? Peep, this is my faithful servant, DisneyMeerkats." "We've met, actually," Peep says, staring indignantly down at the ugly troll, "It once tried to scam me…" (see "Troll Life") "No hard feelings?" says Disney, extending her grim, wrinkly hand. "Yeah, I'm not touching that," Peep tells her, recoiling a little. Disney frowns, standing there for a while, when Reginafan reminds it, "Disney… the drinks?" "Right, yes," the troll nods, walking away to oblige its master. As it does so, it utters to itself, "That bitch is getting a glassful of spit." "So, this is your place?" Peep continues, "It's nice." "Thank you." "So, you do magic? I saw you flare up a fireball or two back there." "Oh, yeah," Reginafan nods, "I come from one of two ancient magical bloodlines. You know the ones?" "The creators of the Staff of Peace, sure," Peep nods, "I've read up on them a little." "And yourself? What of your heritage?" "My people are from the distant land of Earth, banished here by the filthy mortals of that world. We're working to get back there and rule over the inhabitants in penance for our ancestors." "Well… it's nice to have goals." "I think so," Peep nods, "So… torture people often?" "As often as I can," Reginafan tells her, "You know how it is, being Bureau, busy, busy, busy. Execution day is of course the best day of the week. I still have some bodies rotting out on the gallows if you wanna come see?" "Oh, Reginafan… I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship," Peep smiles. Peep grimaces as she lies in the street, still clutching her side. Rachel is knelt over her, wondering both what to do and what even just happened. Joe and Emma soon come rushing out of the nearby building, having heard the scream, and ask what's going on. "It was Brad," Rachel exclaims, "He had this… thing, and… he zapped her with it." "The Staff of Peace," Peep croaks, "Forged by," she looks to Joe, "Your ancestors. Capable of destroying… well, anything." "But the shot didn't hit you; only… only your side, and…" Rachel panics. Peep moves her hands to reveal the bad, weeping burn, and she tells her girlfriend, "It doesn't matter… this is the most powerful weapon in the world we're talking about… I'm turning to dust… slowly…" "Can't you just heal yourself with your magic?" Emma wonders, looking down at the scene with confusion. "I'm in no state to perform magic, I… I…" Peep coughs and some blood seeps from her burn, causing Emma's eyes to widen slightly. "Wait," Joe says, "When… when Jdg98 came out the first time, I… he injured Liz, and it looked fatal, but then Natalia got her to Josh's vault and gave her something and she was fine (see "Ultimate Power"). Maybe whatever it was that cured her is still there." "It's worth a shot," Rachel says, standing up and wiping her eyes, "I'll come with you… I might know what you're talking about if I see it." Joe nods, and Rachel asks Emma to stay with her mother while she and Joe go on this crucial errand. Emma appears reluctant, but ultimately agrees. As Joe and Rachel run off to find the storm cellar beneath which Josh's lair of magic is stored, Emma stares down at her dying mother on the floor, having absolutely no clue what to do or say. "Why are you doing this?" Justine tries asking from beside the counter. "You all just… just stood there… as she died… that stupid zombie… that bitch's wish… you all pushed her to it… and then you stood by… and you let it happen… why… why… why?!" Brad exclaims, still standing in the bar with the Staff in tow; he makes his hostages flinch. "I want to make your deaths last," he says, "This Staff won't really do that… but I have time to think. I have all the time in the world to think of painful ways to kill you all." "I… I don't understand what you're talking about," one woman says, tears in her eyes. Brad turns to her, deeply agitated, and within a matter of seconds the Staff's lightning reduces her to nothing but a dust pile. She screams as it happens, and the people in the bar grow more panicked than they already were. "Don't say anything else," Josh warns his daughter, "He's… snapped." Justine nods, moving closer to her father, and he whispers that he couldn't bare it if anything happened to her. "I'll protect you," he quietly promises. Reginafan and Peep can be seen practicing magic together in the latter's basement laboratory. "You're very powerful," she commends, to which he says, "As are you." "I just concocted this new potion," Peep exclaims, lifting a vial of purple liquid, "If you drink it, your organs slowly begin to liquefy, and then it eats you from the inside out, eventually making you into a puddle. And you feel all of it. I thought we could force-feed it to the next person who dares to steal from us." "That is so hot," the Evil Bureaucrat says, staring at it, and Peep proceeds to file it away on some shelf. "We should have a baby," she says suddenly, to Reginafan's surprised. "Oh, Peep… we're friends and all, but I'm not really into you that way…" "Yeah I'm not really into you either. Too much… male genitalia. But it'd only be once, and think about it. You're powerful, I'm powerful… this baby would be like a magical God. Who are we to deprive to world of such tyranny? Any child of ours, well… he or she would be able to destroy whole wikis with a mere flick of the hand." Reginafan likes what he's hearing. While Brad is diving fully into insanity, babbling to himself with the universe's most deadly weapon in tow, Josh says to his daughter, "I'm sorry for everything I ever put you through… but I really do love you." "I know, daddy," Justine nods, scared. "And I wanna do what's best for you… and for my future grandchild." The two of them share a brief hug, and Josh proceeds to ask Tiago if he has anything with which they could fight Brad. "There's a gun hidden in the counter. We put it there after the last time this place faced a stickup (see "The Leaders")." "Could you grab it? You'd only have one shot…" Josh warns. "Hey!" Brad yells, suddenly being onto their chattering, "Quit yapping or you'll die sooner!" He goes back to nonsensical babbling, and once he's firmly on the other side of the room, Josh nods to Tiago. "No, dad, I'm not gonna let you risk this," Rena whispers. "Son…" "I'm doing it," Rena says, "Don't bother arguing." Making sure that Brad isn't looking, Rena crawls his way behind the counter and reaches up, going to open the drawer inside which the revolver is resting. However, he knows that this might make some noise, so instead he focuses his magic into opening it for him, and the gun proceeds to drift down into his grip. He thumbs back the hammer, which distinctly click''s, and then he stands up, aiming the gun at Brad. However, Brad has already taken out his fairy wand, having heard the ''click, and he uses his own magic to make the gun fly from Rena's grip. He pockets the wand and grabs the gun instead, holding that in one hand and the Staff in the other. "Well, well…" says Brad, "Isn't this just… nifty…" Rena crouches back behind the counter while Brad circles the room with the gun in tow. "I've been wondering which one of you deserves to die the most… and then it hit me… the answer was obvious really, I mean… who else has 'Evil' as a part of their nickname?" And then he fires, and a bullet is plunged into Josh's gut. "Your death should be nice and slow, Mr. Mayor," Brad goes on as Josh falls backward, his daughter crouched over him in tears, "And if you even think of using magic to heal yourself, your daughter here gets zapped into nothingness." Lady's hands grow covered in her father's blood. Joe and Rachel make it to the storm cellar which rests outside the Maleficent Seven's bakery, but it's absolutely covered in meticulously locked chains. Joe tries moving them, but it's no use – they've been magically enhanced, it seems. "Dammit, Josh!" Joe yells, kicking it, but Rachel just weeps. "So this… this has just been a wasted trip? Joanna, she… she could…" More tears, and Joe has no clue how to even begin comforting his friend. Emma is crouching over her mother, who says that she doesn't think Joe and Rachel are going to make it. "What do you mean?" Emma asks. "I mean… I think I'm going to die. I probably deserve it, of course, but still… it's sad," although tears leak from Peep's eyes, she makes very little sound, in a state of eerie peace. "Before I… before I check out," Peep says, "I'd like to set my affairs in order, so… Emma, I am sorry. I'm sorry that I risked your life the way that I did, and I'm sorry that I ever allowed myself to give you up. For so many years, I thought I had killed you… but here you are. Smart, beautiful… you're perfect. You really are. You're…" she coughs again, and some blood comes out. The burn on her side as spread, and some of her begins to crumble away a little as the dusting process begins. "Mom…" Emma utters. "It's so nice to be called that," Peep manages a smile, "Although I've done little to deserve it. I wish I had really been one… my… my biggest regret… is not being able to raise you. I spent so long wondering what could have been; I had to block you out of my head, I…" "And I spent my life wondering who my mother was. Here I am, I finally met you, but… it's too late," Emma's crying now, and she drapes herself across her lone parent in a kind of embrace, spilling tears over her. "I wish I could help you," she weeps, and Peep says that she knows, and she is; "You being here with me in my… in my final moments. It's… a great comfort." Emma goes back to crouching beside the dying Blood Wiccan, staring at her crumbling wound. She goes to touch it with her hand. "It's just… it's just not fair… and… and…" What happens next shocks her. A golden light emanates from her palm, hitting the wound with direct force. The dust which crumbled away rises back up, and the burn is drawn inward along with any lost blood. Soon enough, the entire thing is completely healed, and Emma is left wondering what on Earth just happened as the golden light vanishes. Peep sits up, no longer in pain, and she replies, "Your magic… it saved me…" "M-my magic?" Emma questions, wiping her eyes of tears. "Yes… your grief, I think… I think you unlocked it." "And I saved you," Emma realized, "You're… you're going to live!" The both of them are now crying tears of joy as they embrace happily. Reginafan embraces Peep in her bedroom as he prepares to impregnate her in flashback, kissing her neck. "Whoa, whoa, what are you doing?" the Blood Wiccan asks, and Reginafan explains that he's trying to make love to her. "'Make love'? What are you, a woman? All you need to do is get me pregnant, enough of this foreplay bull crap!" "Well I figured we could at least enjoy the process…" Reginafan argues. "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure you're great. Have you got it up yet?" "Um…" is all the Evil Bureau can say while Peep positions herself in the bed, telling him to do his thing but try not to enjoy it too much because otherwise it'll be awkward the next day. As Reginafan begins undressing, he says that he can't stop thinking about the idea of their child; he would rule Wikia with an iron fist. "He sure would," Peep smiles, "He could burn cities… he could break the laws of magic… he could travel across all the lands… he could dominate Earth." She closes her eyes, loving the thought, but when she notices that Reginafan hasn't joined her in bed yet, she looks at him and wonders why he's stopped. "Do you… do you only want this child as a means of getting to Earth?" "Well yeah," she says, "So are you gonna… you know, or what? If you're not into the whole 'traditional way' you could always just do it into a cup and then I can take it from there." "You're using me…" Reginafan comes to realize, "You… you've been using me this whole time haven't you? You're not my friend, you… you just want me to conceive this magical baby with you so that you can get what you want." "Okay, you got me," Peep says, not exactly caring, "That family never stole anything from me, I just tortured them because I knew you'd be there. I was surprised you bought the whole me-not-knowing-who-you-are thing because, like… you're the Bureaucrat of the wiki I live in, you know? But you did." "You're… so manipulative." "That's something we have in common, yes," Peep nods, "Tell me more about your 'mom' and 'dad' Doc and Trae." "I can't believe this…" Reginafan utters. "Look, are we gonna do this or what? I know you might not get to keep the super baby or whatever, but I'm giving you access to pretty much all my areas right now," Peep tells him. "You're disgusting," he tells her. "Gee, you're no Sheriff Graham yourself…" "I'm not interested in helping you… find someone else to trick," he says, gathering his clothes and storming out. As Josh bleeds out in the arms of his daughter, Brad turns his attention back to the counter, gun and Staff still in tow. "Now," he says, "As for the person who tried to shoot me… Get up, Rena Charming. Get up or I start killing your people." Scared out of his mind, Rena decides to ascend to his feet, knowing quite well that by facing Brad he's staring death right in the face. "You were there that day… you did nothing. But the question is… do I shoot you… or disintegrate you. You were quite the leader back in Wikia. More than I can say for your wife. She got me and Sannse killed the first time, on some wild goose chase. I'll deal with her next. But deciding what to do with you… that is a toughie. Your ancestors forged this Staff… I'm sure it's only fitting that you be the product of its destruction." As Brad prepares to fire, Rena closes his eyes, knowing that he's to die at any second. Justine, her hands still buried in her father's blood, stares up at this and tries to speak out, only to be rendered speechless. Brad smiles wickedly, the crystals at the end of the Staff of Peace beginning to crackle with power, and then… it drops to the floor. Gasps are heard all around, and when Rena opens his eyes, Brad is empty-handed, looking down in shock at the sword which has just been rammed through his chest. A sword that Rena himself forged. The crazed fairy falls to the floor, dead, and Liz stands in his place, having been the one to murder a member of her own team. "Such a good name…" she laments, before she prizes the bloody sword from out of his back and re-sheathes it, then scooping up the Staff of Peace. "I'll be taking this now, if you don't mind," she says, "And, by the way, the locks on this place are real easy to get around. You might wanna fix that. Wouldn't want some crazy person getting in now, would ya'?" She giggles before doing a back-flip across the room, exiting The Sword and Hammer via its now unlocked door, while Rena, Tiago and Justine stare in shock. "Daddy," Justine then says, "Daddy, heal yourself, quick!" Josh nods weakly and begins waving his hand over his gunshot wound; soon enough, it vanishes completely, and Josh is fine. The first thing he does following his near-death experience is hug his daughter, who says that they should celebrate. "Celebrate?" Rena questions. "You know… living," she says. "After we dispose of Brad's body, I assume," Tiago speaks up. "Right, right," Rena nods, thinking; he then turns to Josh and says, "I think it's time you left." "Excuse me?" "I'm happy that you're okay – I really am – but what happened today doesn't change anything. You still killed my mother, and I'm afraid there's no coming back from that." Josh frowns, getting to his feet, and Justine appears sad as he reluctantly vacates the premises. In flashback, DisneyMeerkats enters its master's throne room with a sheet of parchment in tow, telling him that this letter just arrived for him. "Thank you, Disney," Reginafan2626 says, taking the letter, and he begins to read… Reginafan screws up the letter and burns it with a briefly-existent fireball. "Disney," he says. "Yes, sire?" "I need you to draw me up a list… I need to know the name of every magical person in Wikia; I can't have any more threats like her." Disney smiles, happy more than anything that Peep is out of the life of its beloved Bureau, and says that it'll get started right away; "Who knows… there could be a sorcerer right around the corner." In their caravan, ElleBraxton sings to her son Rena Charming as she tucks him in at night. Finally, once he's drifted off, she gives him a kiss on the forehead, saying that she loves him more than anything. Rena smiles in his sleep. Liz is back at the bakery with the Staff in Peace in tow, wondering to herself just how to go about destroying it. As she does this, there's a knock at the door, and so she rests the Staff up against a wall and goes to answer it. "Hi," says Josh, "I understand you're looking for a new member?" Liz smiles; "Looks like the Maleficent Seven is gonna be keeping its name after all. Welcome aboard." She gestures for Josh to come inside, and he does. Category:Season 4 Category:Episodes Category:DeviousPeep-Centric Category:Reginafan2626-Centric